Damas, Flemingo to set up duty-free shops

Look out for big-discount deals on gold jewellery and luxury watches at major airports across the country. Dubai-based jewellery major Damas Jewellery LLC has set up a joint venture company with the Indian arm of Flemingo International to set up duty-free shops at airports for selling jewellery products and luxury watches. Damas will be selling its gold jewellery brands like harmony and legacy and its diamond brands at major airports. Damas has already been allowed to set up shops at Chennai, Trivandrum and Jaipur international airports. Operations at these airports are expected to begin within a month. While Damas is holding a 51% equity stake in the JV, the remaining stake will be with Flemingo. The new company, which has been registered under the Indian Companies Act, 1956, is called Flemingo Jewellery India Pvt Ltd. This company has already won the contract from state-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI) to set shops at three airports. The proposed shops shall use the brand name Damas as long as the Damas Jewellery LLC remains part of the joint venture firm. The JV company is also keen on starting operations at other major airports, government sources said. Being a foreign investor, Damas has sought approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to set up a JV firm in this regard, the sources said. Damas will be able to obtain 51% equity shares of Flemingo Jewellery India, the JV company, after FIPB approves its investment proposal. The JV firm will issue 22,95,000 shares at Rs 10 face value to Damas. While Flemingo will look after the day-to-day management, Damas will depute its personnel and specify other requirement to run the business. Dubai-based Damas LLC, established in 1993, is engaged in the business of gold jewellery, diamonds and watches. Damas has operations in six countries, 127 retail locations and it has one manufacturing & selling division. It also jointly controls companies in India, Dubai, Kuwait, Maldives and UAE. Its annual revenue in 2005 was more than Rs 3,200 crore. Damas operates in India through D’damas India which functions in partnership with diamond house Gitanjali Digico Group. D’damas India has granted a no-objection certificate to Damas to enter into a JV with Flemingo, as per the requirements of Press Note 1 (2005). Flemingo Duty Free Shop, in which Flemingo International has 51.22% equity stake, has been running duty-free shops at various airports and seaports. Recently, Citicorp Venture Capital International has agreed to pick up 15% stake valued at more than Rs 100 crore in Flemingo.

Courtesy: EconomicTimes
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